Pompette
Oxford, Oxfordshire
Pascal and Laura Wiedemann's brasserie in Summertown, one of Oxford's non-academic quarters, takes its name from a French term for that agreeable state that the Brideshead generation knew as 'squiffy'. Walls crowded with pictures, a mix of counter seating and banquettes, and staff who are attuned to the pace of relaxed city dining, add up to an attractive proposition, with a repertoire of mostly traditional French cooking sealing the deal. There are plates of charcuterie, fish soup with rouille, and an appetising mélange of mackerel, fennel, blood orange and capers for starters. Main courses lean towards the substantial, as in cider-braised pig cheeks or cod with chickpeas, cime di rapa, anchovies and aïoli – not forgetting a de rigueur roll call of steaks with sauce variations. After all that, the lightness of desserts is a welcome touch: île flottante with pink praline, or a griottine choux bun laced with kirsch on warm chocolate sauce. And if you're at a loose end on Wednesday night, check out Pompette's 'poulet frites' deal for two (including a carafe of house white). The wine list does venture outside France, but its heart and soul are in the old country, beginning with Bruno Sorg's Crémant d'Alsace by the glass, and building up to giddy wallet-busters from Meursault and Gevrey-Chambertin.
Dining Information:
Private dining room, Separate bar, Wheelchair access, Parking, Family friendly
7 South Parade, Oxford, Oxfordshire OX2 7JL
01865 311166
